Picture This
by RosieMe
Summary: Rose Weasley is going to Hogwarts. She befriends a girl in a painting and doesn't know what she's gotten herself into. Full summary inside. Maybe RWxSM, but I'm not sure. What do you think?
1. Chapter 1: Bad Hair Day

Chapter One: Bad Hair Day

I walked through the barrier between Platforms 9 and 10 holding Mum's hand. With me being the eldest, my family had never had a reason see the train off until I was eleven. I had never gone through the barrier before, and it was a little weird. We stepped through the seemingly solid bricks and appeared on the other side, where a large scarlet train blew it's whistle loudly, as if to greet us. "The train leaves in ten minutes, honey," Mum reminded me, "You should get your things on board the train and come back out to say your goodbyes. I think I see your uncle, so Alby and Jam should be on the train already. See if you can find them."

I didn't have the heart to tell her that my cousins hated her nicknames for them with a passion, so I made my way through the crowd with my trunk and my new owl, Steve. Trust me, I'm usually a lot more creative with names, but he just _looked_ like a Steve. As his tiny cage bumped around, he squawked like an angered chicken and flapped his little wings. Steve was an elf owl and had fluffy brown feathers that I got the impression he was very proud of.

Once on the train, I walked down the aisle looking for my cousins. I saw a head of messy black hair and called to it. "Hey, Albus!" He spun around at my voice and grinned. "Hi Rose, do you want to sit with us?"

I smiled and answered, "I was hoping you would ask." Carefully, I set Steve's cage down on the seat and placed my trunk on the rack above. "Mum said for us to meet her outside."

Albus, James, and I got off the Hogwarts Express and found our families talking. My cousin Lily and brother Hugo were talking about how great it would be when they got to go to Hogwarts. "Hello, Rosie!" said Aunt Ginny, "It's been so long since we've seen you. Can I see your wand?" I took it out of my pocket and showed her. "It's Willow and unicorn hair. Eleven inches. Mr. Ollivander told me that it was "nice and springy", but I'm not exactly sure what that means." She laughed and patted my shoulder. "Very nice, Rose."

Mum and Dad hugged me and said goodbye and good luck. Dad joked around and added "good riddance" for good measure and Mum gave him a look. A few feet away, I saw Albus and James getting their goodbyes too. The train whistled again and I was ushered quickly to it. We all hung out the windows to wave goodbye, and then the train rounded the corner and we were off.

I settled myself down into my seat with Albus and James across from me. James looked mournfully at Albus and remarked, "It'll be sad, being the only son in the family. But I'll have to muddle through, I guess." I looked at him. "What do you mean, 'only son'?"

He grinned. "Isn't it obvious? When little Alby becomes a Slytherin, Mum and Dad'll have to disown him."

"Oh come _on_, James. I really doubt that Albus is Slytherin material," I giggled.

Albus made his most innocent, saddest pouty face. This expression had worked very well in getting him what he wanted quite a few times.

"See? Anyone that good at persuasion must be evil!" James cried in mock exasperation.

The door opened and a tall girl with straight brown hair peeked in. "Do you mind me coming in to sit with you? There's no room anywhere else." We welcomed her in and she sat next to me. "I'm Mandy Carter," she said.

"I'm Rose Weasley and these are my cousins, James and Albus Potter." I gestured to each of them.

She gaped. "You guys are related to _Harry Potter_? Whoa." Turning to me, she said, "...and you said your last name was Weasley. So your mum and dad are-"

"-Hermione and Ron Weasley," I finished for her, "I want to be just like my Mum. She was top of her year when she was at Hogwarts, and I want to do the same, or maybe better. You know, if I can," I finished lamely, feeling embarrassed at how pompous I must have sounded.

Mandy didn't seem to have noticed, as she happily said, "Have you tried any spells yet? We don't get in trouble if we do magic on the train." I smiled at her, recognizing another overachiever like myself. "I've already read through most of the books and my Mum and Dad let me get some extra spell books while we were at Flourish and Blots. Do you want to see them?"

As she was saying that she would love to, James cut in. "Sorry to disrupt your 'nerd fest', ladies, but the sweets trolley is here."

The four of us rushed over to buy candies from the trolley and I made sure to buy more than I could eat, as it would probably be hard to find candy at Hogwarts. I always like to think ahead and be prepared.

After I had stowed about half my candy in my bag, I got out a spell book entitled, "Fun and Simple Charms: Amuse and Surprise Your Friends!" We set about trying each spell that we were able to do in the small compartment. There was one that made you extremely flexible, which I used on myself. "Bendalus!" It only took a few tries to master, and soon I could sit on my own head like it was nothing at all.

The spell wore off eventually, and Mandy found one that could make your hair grow. She aimed it at James, who was busy reading a magazine. "Folicito!" The spell seemed to malfunction at first, and did nothing. But then James' hair started growing startlingly fast and started to fill up the room. "WHAT THE HECK DID YOU DO?" he bellowed.

Albus quickly opened The door and Albus, Mandy, and I stepped out. People stuck their heads out of the compartments to see what was going on as I searched for a countercharm. "Finite incantatem!" I shouted, remembering the spell from one of the school books.

James now sat inside a mountain of black hair that spilled out the door of the compartment. "I hope you know a hairstyling spell," he mumbled.

**Hi people! I hope that you like my first chapter. I know it seems like any other story so far, but if you could give it a chance, I'm sure that you'll see how unique my story is. (I hope, at least!) Also, please tell me if I made any grammatical errors. I want to make my story the best it can be. **

**I came up with the idea for this **FanFic** while reading Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix for the third time. I won't explain how at the moment, because I don't want to give anything away. The main character had to be Rose, of course, because we share a name. 3 3 3 When i first read that epilogue in Deathly Hallows, I was all like, "OMG! I LOVE YOU EVEN MORE NOW, JK ROWLING!"**

**Thanks for reading! ~RosieMe**


	2. Chapter 2: Sorting

Chapter Two: Sorting

As it happened, I didn't know a hairstyling spell, but I did have a couple pairs of scissors. With Albus and Mandy's help, we were able to cut James' hair back to a suitable length. The hair we cut off was the next problem. We managed to pack it down a little, so we could sit on the seats, and one by one we went to change into our robes.

"What house do you want to be in, Albus?" I asked. James was already a Gryffindor. "I think that Gryffindor would be great, because my Mum and Dad were both in there, but Ravenclaw comes second." "I'm not very brave," I remarked more to myself than anyone else, "So I don't think that Gryffindor is the best place for me. Slytherin is out of the question, of course. Hufflepuff wouldn't be _too _bad, but I really hope that I'm in Ravenclaw."

Mandy looked relieved. "Oh good, you want to be in Ravenclaw too. I've heard that you have to answer a riddle before you can enter the common room. The problem is, I'm horrible at riddles."

Albus looked interested. "Is that true? I think I remember Dad saying something about riddles being the way to get in. At least you don't have to memorize a password, right?

"True," I answered. Then, to Mandy, I said, "Don't worry, I love riddles. If we're in Ravenclaw together, I'll help you get in to the common room." She grinned at me.

I saw Scorpius Malfoy and a couple friends walk past. Dad had warned me about him.

An hour or so later, night had fallen in the train and the cushion of James' hair was itchy for our legs to be in. We ended up sitting cross legged and uncomfortable on the seats as James reminded us constantly that our discomfort was entirely our fault.

"Yeah James, I bet that really helps them," Albus remarked sarcastically, "I don't see you trying to help. You're only the oldest one here-the one who's actually been taught (italics) magic."

James rolled his eyes and took out his wand. "Um... What was the spell again?" he mumbled to himself, "Oh, right. Shrillio!" The mound of hair started growing again.

"James!" The other three of us shrieked in unison. I tried Finite incantatem again, but it didn't do anything.

"Everyone! Get out!" Mandy yelled. We all grabbed our bags and James, Albus, and I quickly picked up our owls. I shut the door and we sat in the aisle and watched the growing hair slowly fill up our compartment.

"Well, I'll never forget my first ride on the Hogwarts Express," I mumbled, smiling a little. We had only watched the hairy mountain grow for about twenty minutes by the time the train began to slow down.

When it stopped, everyone got out of their compartments to leave the train. I saw about half the school look into our compartment on their way out. Some looked worried, like they thought that we might still be inside. The pile had reached the ceiling and the door seemed to be bulging a little, if my vision was correct.

Luckily, no one was kind enough to open the door and see if we were in there.

As the four of us got off the train, we heard booming calls of "Firs' years! Firs' years! Follow me!" I easily spotted who was calling. He was twice the height of a man and three times as wide.

I poked Albus. "Hey! I think that's Hagrid! Mum and Dad have talked about him!"

"Hagrid? Who's Hagrid?" asked Mandy, confused. Albus helped her out. "Hagrid is the gamekeeper and Care of Magical Creatures teacher. My dad and Rose's parents always used to visit him."

We pushed our way through the students to Hagrid. By now James had left us for the carriages and his friends. Hagrid noticed Albus first. "Well hello there!" he said warmly, "Yeh would be Albus, righ'? Spittin' image of yer father, you are." "R-right," said Albus, who was being lifted off the ground by the handshake Hagrid was giving him. Then Hagrid noticed me.

I smiled a little shyly. "Hi."

"And you mus' be Rosie. I have ter say, yeh look a lot like yer mum. 'Cept yer blue eyes an' red hair, 'o course."

Then he turned and herded us first years toward the lake. A small fleet of boats greeted us on the shore and we climbed into them. As we floated magically across the lake, I saw the large, ancient castle spread before us. Having already read Hogwarts, A History, I knew that the castle was over a thousand years old. There were merpeople, grindylows, and a giant squid in the lake we were so serenely gliding across, and that the ceiling in the Great Hall was bewitched to mirror the sky.

After our boat ride, all the first years were gathered into a room to wait for the sorting ceremony.

After a few minutes, a witch in green robes entered. She had graying black hair in a tight bun on the back of her head and looked a little strict. "Hello students. I am pleased to welcome you to Hogwarts. I an Professor McGonagall. When I lead you out of these doors, I expect you all to be quiet and enter the Great Hall in a single file line.

"Once inside, you will be called up one at a time for sorting. Follow me." We obediently walked behind her into the Great Hall and lined up in front of four long tables.

McGonagall cleared her throat and said, "Welcome first years. We hope that you will have a good time here at Hogwarts. This ceremony is designed to split you into the four houses. They are as follows: Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, and Slytherin. The Sorting Hat will now sing its song."

It was then that I noticed the dirty, patched, burned hat sitting on a stool. A tear opened in the side like a mouth and it began sing.

"Oh you may not think I'm pretty,

But don't judge on what you see,

I'll eat myself if you can find

A smarter hat than me.

You can keep your bowlers black,

Your top hats sleek and tall,

For I'm the Hogwarts Sorting Hat

And I can cap them all.

There's nothing hidden in your head

The Sorting Hat can't see,

So try me on and I will tell you

Where you ought to be.

You might belong in Gryffindor,

Where dwell the brave at heart,

Their daring, nerve, and chivalry

Set Gryffindors apart;

You might belong in Hufflepuff,

Where they are just and loyal,

Those patient Hufflepuffs are true

And unafraid of toil;

Or yet in wise old Ravenclaw,

if you've a ready mind,

Where those of wit and learning,

Will always find their kind;

Or perhaps in Slytherin

You'll make your real friends,

Those cunning folks use any means

To achieve their ends.

So put me on! Don't be afraid!

And don't get in a flap!

You're in safe hands (though I have none)

For I'm a Thinking Cap!"

At the end of its song, everyone clapped and the Sorting Hat bent over a little in what I guessed was a bow. Then Professor McGonagall began to read off the names. Carter, Mandy was put in Ravenclaw to her delight and I smiled at her as she sat down.

I knew very few of the people called, and the names I did recognize were ones I had heard talk of between family members. Tara and Emmaline Finnegan were the twin daughters of one of my dad's old classmates Seamus and... who was that? Violet? Lavender? I couldn't remember.

I waited as the seemingly endless list was called. "Weasley" was at the end of the alphabet, and it gave me plenty of time to wonder what house I would be in.

Malfoy, Scorpius was called to the stool. He strode up to the Sorting Hat with such pomp and importance, that he seemed an extremely self absorbed prince. To everyone's shock, however, the Hat did not shout, "Slytherin!" the second it touched his head. It actually took about three extremely awkward minutes to decide where to put him.

During those three minutes, Scorpius became less and less regal looking. Something like worry flickered over his face every once in a while. Soon he began to fidget and squirm on the seat. The prince was now just a restless boy.

When the Hat called out "Ravenclaw!", the whole room went silent. The usual loud cheers from the Ravenclaw table were snuffed out in record time as they realized that a _Malfoy_ had been chosen for _Ravenclaw. _It was a relatively well known fact that the Malfoys had been in Slytherin since the creation of the school.

Scorpius was the first who wasn't. As he carefully placed the Hat back on its stool, I thought I saw it chuckle just a bit. Scorpius seemed as if he half wanted to cheer that he wasn't in Slytherin and half wanted to curl up in a fetal position. His face seemed like it wanted to look calm, poised, and triumphant, but I could tell he was worried underneath.

After a few more were sorted, it was Albus' turn. I hoped that he would be happy with what the Sorting Hat chose him as. There was no need for another episode of what happened to Scorpius. The Hat sat on his head a minute and exclaimed, "Gryffindor!" Beaming, Albus shot me an encouraging glance and joined his brother at Gryffindor's cheering table. "LOOK, EVERYONE!" They called to the school, "We got a THIRD POTTER!" They continued with cheers of "Third Potter, third Potter, third Potter!" until Professor McGonagall made them quiet down.

After a few more students were called up, it was just Idian Zabini and I who were left. McGonagall announced Weasley, Rose, and I sat down on the stool.

_Ah, a young Weasley, _It spoke into my head in a kind of gravelly but soft voice, _Where should I put you? You seem to be very bright, young lady. I remember your mother. She was very nearly in Ravenclaw, but her bravery turned out to be quite important. You have her smarts._

Under the Hat, I blushed.

_You would do well in Ravenclaw, but Gryffindor would not be bad either. You have quite a bit of bravery stored in you, you know._

_Not really, _I thought back.

_I think that you'll find you do. Great talent appears at the most unlikely of times. I do not want to place you where you will not succeed, Miss Weasley. I think that you would do well to be in... _"Ravenclaw!" It finished its sentence out loud. and the Ravenclaw table erupted in cheers. I took off the hat, quietly saying thanks. I could have sworn it winked at me.

**Hey, so I don't know if I even have readers of this story, but whatever. If you care, thank you for caring. :D If you are a superfan of Harry Potter like I am, you may have noticed that the Sorting Hat's song is the same one from the first book. The Sorting Hat actually changes its song every year, but I am not good at song writing, so I made one tiny on purpose mistake. I just didn't want to write another whole song. :) I also just made an account on FictionPress and will be posting my first chapter hopefully by Monday, October 10th. Thanks for reading!**


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